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Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c9.s7: Exports—Imports

Life in Ancient India as Depicted in the Jain Canons, with Commentaries: An Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey c9.s7

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English

Exports—Imports

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What commodities were exported or imported or what exchanged inland we do not exactly know. With regard to inland trade we hear a number of commodities that were exchanged. We are told that the sea-faring merchants of Campā referred to above, loaded their carts with four kinds of goods, viz., that which could be counted (gaṇima) as betel-nuts etc., balanced (dharima) as sugar etc., measured (meya) as ghee, rice, etc. and scrutinized (paricchejja) as cloth, jewel, etc. and making provision of various articles such as rice, flour (samiya), oil, ghee, molasses (gula), curds (gorasa), drinking water, water vessels, medicines, drugs, straw, wood, wearing apparel, and weapons etc. for their journey, they left for Mithilā by river.²⁸ As already mentioned, gold and ivory were carried from Uttarāpatha to Dakṣiṇāpatha for sale. Cloth seems to be an important exchangeable commodity. Mathurā and Vidiśā are mentioned as manufacturing centres of cloths.²⁹ The country of Gauḍa was famous for silken garment.³⁰ We are told that the cloth coming from east to the country of Lāta was sold at a higher price.³¹ Then Tāmalitti,³² Malaya,³³ Kāka,³⁴ Tosali,³⁵ Sindhu,³⁶ Dakṣiṇāpatha,³⁷ and China³⁸ were famous for various kinds of textiles. Nepāla was noted for fluffy blankets³⁹; the woolen blankets were sold at a high price in Mahārāṣṭra.⁴⁰

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²⁸ Nāyā, 8, p. 98.

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²⁹ Āva Ti (Harı), p 307

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³⁰ Ācā Ti II 5, p 361 a.

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³¹ Brh Bhā Vr 3 3884.

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³² Vya. 7 32

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³³ Anu Sū 37, p. 30

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³⁴ Nisī cū. 7, p 467

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³⁵ ibid

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³⁶ Ācā. cū p 304, Ācā. Ti II, 1, p 361a

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³⁷ Ācā. cū 303

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³⁸ Brh Bhā 2 3662.

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³⁹ ibid. Vr 3 3824.

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⁴⁰ ibid 3 3914.

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The Nāyādhammakahā refers to various kinds of cloth, which were loaded in waggons and were carried for sale.⁴¹

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⁴¹ Nāyā, 17, p 203.

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Horse was another important commodity that was exchanged in those days. Kāliyadīva was known for beautiful horses and it contained mines of silver, gold, jewels and diamonds.⁴² Then the name of Kamboja is mentioned for horses.⁴³ Uttarāpatha was famous for thorough-bred horses.⁴⁴ Dilavāliyā was noted for mules.⁴⁵

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⁴² ibid, p 202 ff

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⁴³ Uttarā Sū 11.16.

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⁴⁴ Uttarā Ti p 141.

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⁴⁵ Das cū 6 p 213.

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Then Puṇḍra was known for black cows;⁴⁶ Bheraṇḍa for sugarcane;⁴⁷ and Mahāhimavanta for gosīsa sandal.⁴⁸

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⁴⁶ Taṇḍula Ti p 26 a.

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⁴⁷ Jīvā 3 p 355

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⁴⁸ Uttarā Ti 18, 252 a.

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Pārasaula or Persia was used to export various commodities such as saṅkha, phopphala, candana, agaru, mañjiṭṭha, silver, gold, gems, pearls and corals.⁴⁹

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⁴⁹ ibid, 3, p 64 a.

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The merchants who returned to their country with valuable goods sometimes practised fraud in order to avoid payment of the royal taxes. The Rāyapaseniya refers to the traders in aṅka jewel, conch-shells or ivory, who did not take the regular highway but always took to the more difficult routes in order to escape the taxes.⁵⁰ We hear of the king of Bennāyaḍa who detected the trick of a deceitful merchant and put him under arrest.⁵¹

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⁵⁰ Sū. 104

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⁵¹ Uttarā. Ṭi. op. cit

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The other saleable commodities were various musical instruments such as vīṇā, vallakī, bhāmarī, kaccahabhī, bhambhā, ṣaḍbhṛamari; wooden toys (kaṭṭhakamma), models of clay etc. (potthakamma), pictures (citta), dolls etc. made of plasters (leppa), wreaths etc. which were prepared by stringing (ganthima), dolls etc. which were prepared by plaiting (veḍhima), stuffed dolls (purima), cloths etc. which were prepared by intertwining (saṅghāima); fragrant substances such as koṭṭha tamālapatta, coya, tagara, elā, hirevera (a kind of Andropogon) and others; various kinds of sugar such as khaṇḍa (khānd in Hindi), molasses (guḷa), sugar (sakkarā), matsyandikā, puspottara and padmottara.⁵² The Bṛhatkalpa Bhāṣya adds musk (katthūriyā), asafoetida (hiṅgu), conch-shell and salt.53

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⁵² Nāya 17, p 203 53 1 3074. 54 Artha. p 46 55 Rāya Sū 10, also Bṛh Bhā 1 2300. 56 See Nāya 15,160, Bṛh Bhā 1.3073; Āra. Ti (Hari.), p. 384; also Phala Jātaka (I, pp 270ff); Apannaka Jātaka (No. 1), I. P. 99; Avadāna sataka, II, 13, p. 71. 57 p 553, II, 34. 58 Ovā. 39, 178 f. 59 Sūya Ṭī. 1 11, p. 196. 60 p 272. 61 Ācā cū. p 247. 62 Nisī. cū. Pi., p 90.

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